A Tragic Loss Of Traction
1
A knotted condom lay not on top of, but in front of, the bedside table on the dusty warm tiles. Three packs of unopened Weetabix On The Go milk & cereal breakfast biscuits took precedence on top of the table, and a citronella candle struggled to stay alight in the morning heat. Somewhere in the village, a church bell rang and summoned the locals to Sunday ceremony.
2
In and out of consciousness, the boy - no, the man, but really the boy - eventually became aware of his surroundings. 18 and struggling to survive for 10 days in the Mediterranean summer, he contemplated for the trillionth time that week phoning his mum at home. The sheets barely covering his nakedness were too thin to be properly comfortable, and he used both of the bed's pillows to rest his head on. Somewhere near the sea, the love of his life was also struggling to survive in the Mediterranean summer, but he had given up all hope of her ever returning to a more natural climate.
3
Without the need for sun protection because of her tanned, brown skin, she looked out towards the sea. It attracted her with creeping tendrils of mystery, and they ebbed and flowed waiting to be uncovered and recorded. Her hair snaked down the back of her neck in a ponytail, bleached blonde by the sun. Her boyfriend had bought her L'Oreal Natural Brown hair dye from back in England when he came out to stay with her, and it sat neglected back on her dressing table. She didn't want to dye it. The blonde was, after all, her natural hair colour before she had hidden it with years of colouring, and it also served as a momento for her time here working at the dive centre during the hot days, and the tiny restaurant in the evenings. She was in love, but in love with a country, not any boy.
4
Wandering out onto his balcony, still unclothed, he felt his body wake up. The wind speed - 3 knots, the temperature - highs of 32 and currently 26 at 9.30 in the morning. The air con on his rooftop began to rattle and he imagined that the others were also beginning to wake up. Somewhere 2 floors below him, he heard a cutlery drawer rattle and a frying pan get placed onto the hob. He thought of his girl by the sea, and he felt in love. He was struggling to survive in a country far away from home, but at least he was here with her.
5
Down a spiral staircase and down the dustier steps, he pulled a blue t-shirt over his head to cover his white chest.
Blue again? said one of the girls, and he didn't bother to reply, only grunting in annoyance at her.
The 7 of them were comfortable together. They had come in the name of seeing their friend, his girlfriend, to keep her company for 10 days, and so far it had been successful. Most nights were spent drunk next to their pool, and last night was spent out at a bar in the shadow of the Virgin Mary up the road from their house. It was an easy existence really, but inside all of them struggled to be comfortable every day.
This is a learning curve this is a learning curve this is a learning curve this is a learning curve, they thought to themselves. If you can't do this, how will you cope with university? how will you cope with uni? how will you cope?
Next month they would all know how the rest of their lives would play out. One single letter containing a few smaller letters. How can so much rest on one B grade in an art a-level? Outside, a horse clopped down the hill towards the sea, and the girl looked out to sea.
6
5 in the evening, and he left the villa alone to walk downhill. She finishes at half past tonight and they would have an hour together before she started work at the restaurant. He smiled at the promise of an hour with her, watching her get ready, and the quick kiss before her shift started. A moped struggled to ascend the steep climb.
15 minutes later, he was on the Marsalforn strip. Restaurants were beginning to buzz, and he was stopped twice by front-of-house workers trying to entice him in with expensive dinner menus. Neon lights flickered to life, and somewhere live music began to sound out. At the end of the strip, tucked away in a corner, was the dive centre where he would find her, and 2 minutes from that was the restaurant where she would be spending the evening, and where he would order a drink in 4 hours time just so that he could spend a little more time with her.
7
The dive team were just leaving. A stream of orange polo shirts and black shorts, they piled out of the door looking for a bar to sit down at to drink the night away, and she lingered behind waiting for him.
Come sit with us! they said to her. Live your own life, spend some time with us, it'll be fun!
She ignored their demands until they grew too thirsty to wait around for her any longer, and they disappeared into the strip. She decided to wait upstairs for him - she would surprise him by getting ready early so that they could sit and chat properly rather than the hurried conversations of somebody who is trying to do a hundred things at once.
8
The dive team had chosen their residency at a bar for the evening and were sipping at their first drinks of the night when one of them spotted him walking towards the dive centre.
Isn't that her boyfriend? he asked the others - they didn't know - Hey! Over here, mate! Are you looking for her? She seemed pretty tired and said that you should come sit with us instead and she'd be down in half an hour.
He frowned. It didn't seem like her, but he knew that she worked hard to keep up with the workload during the day. If she was napping then she would feel much better by the time she came down. He sat down with the others and ordered a coke.
No. Make it a vodka! they all said. A double vodka! they laughed at him as he agreed nervously.
9
Quarter past six. Red-faced and hot, she stood up from the hard couch above the dive centre and walked downstairs. Exiting to the stuffy heat of the mid-evening, she looked around for him. He had said he would meet at half 5, and he was now 45 minutes late, where is he, where is he? A band of orange uniforms stood out from a bar about halfway down the strip, and she made her way over to the fugitives to ask if they had seen him anywhere.
When she came closer, she saw that he was sitting with them. His vacant eyes turned to stare at her, before they lit up with recognition.
There You Are! he said too loudly. I Have Been Waiting For You! Sleepyhead!
She turned away in disgust, her eyes watering at the sight.
Come And Have A Drink! they all said, but more to themselves than to her.
Her legs felt heavy and her head drooped a little as she turned away from them.
i'm going to work she mumbled to the table, but they had already stopped paying attention.